Discover it vs. Discover it Miles: Which is Better?

Discover it vs. Discover it Miles comes down to whether you prefer a steady rewards rate or one with more boom-or-bust potential. Neither card charges an annual fee. Both double the rewards you earn the first year. And both require at least good credit for approval. The main difference in the Discover it vs. Discover it Miles matchup is how you earn rewards on purchases. With Discover it, you get 5% cash back for spending in bonus categories that change every few months, plus 1% everywhere else. And Discover it Miles offers 1.5 miles for every dollar you spend in all categories.

So Discover it is the way to go if you’re interested in earning 5% cash back in rotating bonus categories. And if you subscribe to the idea that slow and steady wins the race, Discover it Miles is a better bet. But you’ll want to compare the cards for yourself, so I’ll lay out what each offers in the most important categories.

Here’s the breakdown for Discover it vs Discover it Miles:

Annual fee: $0 for both cards.

Rewards: Discover it offers 5% cash back on categories that change every quarter, plus 1% cash back on all other purchases. Discover it Miles lets you earn 1.5 miles for every dollar you spend.

1st year bonus: Both cards match the rewards you earn the first year your account is open.

Redemption: With Discover it, you can use your cash to get a statement credit, donate to charity, pay at Amazon.com, or receive a bank account deposit. You can also buy gift cards, and you’ll get a $5 bonus when you do. Discover it Miles lets you redeem for cash or a statement credit to cover travel purchases. Either way, each mile is worth 1 cent.

Purchase APR: For both cards, it’s 0% for 14 months, then somewhere between 12.24% and 24.24%, depending on credit worthiness.

In some cases, Discover it might win the Discover it vs. Discover it Miles competition. After all, some people do have the organizational skills to consistently sign up for a different bonus category every few months. But even if you sign up for all the bonus categories, they’re not guaranteed to fit your natural spending patterns, so it’s still a gamble.

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WalletHub Answers is a free service that helps consumers access financial information. Information on WalletHub Answers is provided “as is” and should not be considered financial, legal or investment advice. WalletHub is not a financial advisor, law firm, “lawyer referral service,” or a substitute for a financial advisor, attorney, or law firm. You may want to hire a professional before making any decision. WalletHub does not endorse any particular contributors and cannot guarantee the quality or reliability of any information posted. The helpfulness of a financial advisor's answer is not indicative of future advisor performance.

WalletHub members have a wealth of knowledge to share, and we encourage everyone to do so while respecting our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that editorial and user-generated content on this page is not reviewed or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution. In addition, it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered.

Ad Disclosure: Certain offers that appear on this site originate from paying advertisers, and this will be noted on an offer’s details page using the designation "Sponsored", where applicable. Advertising may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.